ABILENE, Texas - Men's hoops led a total of three times, each by two points, in the first half and saw the Cowboys lead the rest of the way in an 81-74 loss Saturday night in Abilene.

Jezreel Griffin got the Lobos on the board first with a layup 53 seconds in for a 2-0 lead.

HSU used a 7-2 run for a 7-4 lead at 15:35 that was quickly wiped away by a Caelyb Kerley triple and a Carson Perkins layup for a 9-7 Sully lead at 14:41.

The Lobos final lead of the game came on another Carson Perkins layup at 12:51 for an 11-9 advantage.

Hardin-Simmons answered with a game-tying dunk and took a five-point lead after a 7-0 answer for a 16-11 advantage at 10:31. Their lead in the first half grew to as many as 11 with 5:23 left.

Sully was able to tie the game at 1:12 with a 13-2 run. Omar Boone started with a jumper before Zach Kelsey's layup cut it to seven. Kerley later stepped to the line and sank a pair of free throws. After an HSU jumper, Jace Perkins hit a triple before a Julian Paredes layup. Perkins then made it a 33-33 tie with a jumper.

The Cowboys scored the final two on a layup with 46 seconds left to take a 35-33 lead to the break.

After HSU upped their lead to five in the early goings of the second, Paredes and Kerley answered with back-to-back buckets to pull within one at 16:58.

Kerley answered a layup from the Cowboys with a jumper at 16:22 to trail 41-40.

HSU was able to keep Sully's offense at bay just enough to hold at least a two-point lead until they increased it to 69-58 with 5:49 remaining.

Trey Nelson answered with a three-pointer before Carson Perkins converted a layup to cut it to six at 5:27.

The Cowboys then doubled their lead to 75-63 with a 6-0 run over the next 2:23.

Paredes finished an 11-3 run with a triple to cut it to four 22 seconds left.

HSU was able to hit three of their four free throws down the stretch and hold the Lobos to a pair of missed three-point attempts for an 81-74 win.

Kerley led all Lobos with 15 points and added six rebounds.

Boone contributed 12 points, four rebounds, and a game-high two blocks off the bench.

Paredes had a team-high seven rebounds and scored 11.

Jace Perkins was also in double digits with 10 points, a career-high.

Sully falls to 7-9 on the season and 5-6 in conference play. The Cowboys improve to 12-5 and 7-3.

The Lobos remain in Abilene for a 1:00 p.m. tip against McMurry on Saturday.